The cost of essential medicines in England has risen by up to 30 per cent due to the ongoing conflict in Iran, pharmacists have warned. The war has driven up oil and gas prices, leading to increased manufacturing and transport costs for suppliers, who now face paying 40 to 50 per cent more for stock, according to the National Pharmacy Association.
Impact on common medications
Community chemists are passing on these increases to customers, with prices for painkillers such as paracetamol and hay fever medications like cetirizine tablets rising by 20 to 30 per cent. The surge in oil prices is attributed to the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, where the US has implemented a blockade and Iran is attacking vessels. The International Energy Agency has described the situation as the worst energy crisis in history.
Supply chain challenges
Medicines containing paracetamol and aspirin, which use petroleum derivatives, are particularly affected as they are manufactured using by-products from the petrochemical industry. The conflict has also doubled transport costs, with one in five NHS medicines arriving by air. Some chemists have been forced to stop selling aspirin due to pre-existing supply issues exacerbated by the war.
Olivier Picard, chair of the National Pharmacy Association, reported that his own Berkshire chemist had been unable to order paracetamol, and when it returned to the market, the wholesale price had doubled. He advised against stockpiling medicines, warning that panic-buying would create shortages and push costs even higher.
Government response
In a letter to Health Secretary Wes Streeting last month, Dr Leyla Hannbeck, CEO of the Independent Pharmacies Association, expressed concerns over the supply of essential drugs that “millions rely on daily,” such as blood pressure medications. In response, the government stated it was working to boost Britain’s domestic medicine manufacturing industry and reassured that the majority of medicines are in good supply.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “We are monitoring the situation closely and there is currently very limited disruption to medical product supply from the conflict in the Middle East. We have robust measures in place to manage disruption across the health and social care sector to protect patients, including holding buffer stocks and the procurement of alternative products where necessary. The vast majority of the UK’s licensed medicines are in good supply, and we will continue working closely with industry partners to help ensure the continued supply of medical products.”
